


Riding Lessons

by Sharpiefan



Series: Master John's Practical Pranks [1]
Category: Show the Colours (Roleplaying Game)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-19
Updated: 2015-05-19
Packaged: 2018-03-31 06:56:51
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 562
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3968695
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sharpiefan/pseuds/Sharpiefan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Originally posted <a href="http://showthecolours.dreamwidth.org/1935.html?thread=17551#cmt17551">here</a>  at <a href="http://showthecolours.dreamwidth.org/profile"><img/></a><a href="http://showthecolours.dreamwidth.org/">showthecolours</a>. Written a while ago for the prompt <i>Childhood injury: Any character</i>. Updated to fit Vickery family history as it now stands.</p>
    </blockquote>





	Riding Lessons

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted [here](http://showthecolours.dreamwidth.org/1935.html?thread=17551#cmt17551) at [](http://showthecolours.dreamwidth.org/profile)[showthecolours](http://showthecolours.dreamwidth.org/). Written a while ago for the prompt _Childhood injury: Any character_. Updated to fit Vickery family history as it now stands.

  
**Title:** Riding Lessons  
**Fandom/Canon:** Show the Colours  
**Author:** [](http://sharpiefan.dreamwidth.org/profile)[](http://sharpiefan.dreamwidth.org/)**sharpiefan**  
**Word count:** 500  
**Rating:** U  
**Spoilers:** None  
**Pairing/Characters:** None  
**Disclaimer:** All characters are mine; John Vickery grew up to become Captain John Vickery, 5/60th (Royal American) Rifles.  
**Author's Note:** Originally posted [here](http://showthecolours.dreamwidth.org/1935.html?thread=17551#cmt17551) at [](http://showthecolours.dreamwidth.org/profile)[**showthecolours**](http://showthecolours.dreamwidth.org/). Written a while ago for the prompt _Childhood injury: Any character_. Updated to fit Vickery family history as it now stands.

  
"Master John! Keep your heels down!"

The Honourable John Vickery, eight-year-old son of the Viscount Saltash, was seated on a pony and currently under the tuition of His Lordship's head stableman, on a leading rein, and hating it.

What he wanted was to get off the leading rein, out of the training paddock, and to do some real riding, like his papa. Riding endless circles on his elder brother's outgrown Welsh cob was not his idea of a good time.

He huffed a sigh and tried to follow Dixon's instructions. The dour old man wasn't easy to please, though, and the boy wondered just why it was that his father had kept him in his service after the war in America was over. If he ever went to war, he'd make sure that _his_ servant had a much nicer temper.

"All right then, Master John, give him a touch of the heel - we'll try the trot next!"

Bramble, at least, was a good-tempered thing, and picked up the pace, bumping along at the trot. John scowled and stood up in the stirrups; the trot had to be the most uncomfortable gait a horse could possibly have.

What he wanted was to try the canter - and that meant getting out of the rotten training paddock.

Someone called to Dixon, and he saw his chance. The old man (well, really, he couldn't be any older than about forty, but that was quite old enough!) crossed the paddock to the fence to speak to the other man - Jackson, who was something like 16 and all arms and legs - giving John enough time to lean forward and unclip the leading rein, before setting Bramble at the fence.

He'd jumped before, once, and had seen Robert do it plenty of times. Bramble didn't hesitate, but went over the fence as neatly as anything and into the field beyond.

That was more like it!

He urged Bramble into a canter across the meadow, revelling in the freedom of it... until the horse stumbled, pitching John over his head to the ground.

He blinked his eyes open. The back of his head hurt; he must have bumped it on the ground somehow. Dixon and Jackson were both looking down at him with worried expressions that changed almost immediately to relief, and then anger - or something very like it.

"Just you wait till your father finds out what you've bin and done, young master," Dixon said. "Jackson, go and see that Bramble isn't hurt."

The teenaged stable boy nodded and disappeared from John's line of sight.

Dixon stooped to pick him up. "If my son had done that, he'd get such a whippin' he'd not sit down for a week!"

"I jumped the fence all right though, didn't I?"

"No small thanks to Bramble, young Master."

John Vickery closed his eyes, feeling dizzy. He was almost sure he'd seen a look of pride flicker across the old man's face at the feat, though.


End file.
